Furnace



G. D. WHITE May 24 I FURNACE Filed Sept. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 24 1927. G

Filed D. WHITE FURNA CE Sept. 7, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 000o0000o000000000000 f 00000000000000000000 0000000000 0000000000-% 000000000 000000000 "Wll'r a 0 A s S /-7/ -x7// V4 7 Q j T Patented May 24, 1927 UNITED STATES 1,629,606 PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE DAVIS "WHITE, OF PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS. ASSIGNOR TO THE TEXAS COM- PANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,

A CORPORATION OF TEXAS.

FURNACE.

Application filed September 7, 1923,

This invention relates to furnaces, and more particularly to furnaces provided with a heating coil through which oil is passed and in which the oil is heated in transit.'

1n the treatment of o l for various purposes, it is frequently desirable or necessary to heat it. as for example. when the oil is to be subjected to such processes as distillation or cracking. A common method of treating oil in such cases is to circulate it through a heating coil comprising a coil of pipe of restricted diameter disposed within or near a furnace. Heat from the furnace is circulated around the coil and the oil passing thcrethrough is heated in transit. Such systems operate satisfactorily as long as the heatis uniformly distributed around the coil, but when the distribution of heat is not uniform, so called local hot spots are likely to occur at the points where the heat is greatest. The hot spots are in turn likely to overheat the oil and produce on the inside of the coil deposits of coke which are not only dillicult to remove, but which greatly impair the etliciency of the apparatus. There is the possibility that the oil may be burned upon hot spots or that the pipes will clog, or even that the temperature will become so great as to cause crystallization of the metal in the pipe whereupon the latter is liable to burst and cause serious damage. 13y maintaining a uniform temperature around the pipe the formation of local hot spots is greatly minimized and the ctliciency of the entire system is correspondiugly increased.

Accordingly one of the objects of this invention is to provide a furnace so constructed and arranged that an even distribution of heat can be secured throughout the coil heating chamber.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for obtaining a relatively even distribution of heat as it: passes from the combustion chamber to the coil chamber, and also to provide means disposed pitious points in the coil chamber for controlling the escape of the waste products of combustion whereby the distribution of heat in the chamber can be regulated.

Other and incidental objects of the invention will appear as the description thereof progresses.

A clearer understanding of the invention will be obtained by referring to the following emlmdiment of the present contacting with the at pro Serial No. 861,337.

description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which,

Figure l is a sectional view in side elevz tion of a furnace constituting a preferred invention.

igure :2 is a sectional view in front elevation, the lefthand half of the view being taken on the line 2-2 of Figure l, and the righthand half of the view being taken on the line fP-Q of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, the furnace structure comprises in general a heating coil 18, a coil heating chamber 10, a plurality of combustion chambels 12, double checkered archways l4 and 14* chamber 10 from the combustion chambers 12, and a plurality of valved fines 38 communicating with the coil chamber 10 for controlling the distribution of heat within the chamber.

Considering more specifically the construction of the furnace the coil heating chamber 10 is constructed of suitable heat resisting material, and disposed therein is a long coil of pipe 18 adapted to contain the oil or other liquid which it is desired to heat in transit therethrough. The pipe 18 comprises a plurality of sections that are horizontally disposed within the chamber 10 and in a plurality of super-imposed rows, the pipes in each row being disposed in staggered relation to those in the next adjacent row, and extend from the front to the rear thereof. The ends of the several pipe sections project through the front wall 20 and the rear wall 22 of the coil chamber and are suitably joined by; means of U-bend members 24. Thus a continuous heating coil or system of piping is provided through which the oil flows during the heating processes. The U-bend members 24 can readily be rcmov d whenever it becomes necessary or desirable to clean the pipes.

It is frequently necessary to inspect the interior of the coil chamber 10 during the hetiiting operation and for this purpose a peep hole 26 is provided at a convenient pomt in the wall of the chamber: Through the peep hole the operator in charge can observe the inside of the chamber.

Directly beneath the coil chamber 10 are disposed a plurality of combustion clambers 12, although. a single chamber may be enu'iloyed, if desired. As the combustion chambers are of identically the same conseparating the coil or less evenly 12 and is more or struction only one will be described. At a suitable place on the floor of the combustion chambers 12 an upwardly projecting battle s is disposed and behind the bafile a gradually rising wall extends to the rear of the furnace. A flame from a suitable gas burner or the like is introduced through an opening- 32 in the front wall of the furnace, and upon so entering the combustion chambers 12 is discharged against the baffle 28. It will readily be seen that the tendency for some heat from the flame to rise immediately upon entering the combustion chambers, while the rest is directed to more remote parts by the -battle 28 and the rising wall 30, and in this manner the heat is more distributed throughout the chamber.

In order to still more evenly distribute the heat prior to its contact with the'heating coil 18, double checkered archways 1 t14 are disposed between the combustion chambers 12 and the coil chamber 10. Each archway, 14 and 14 respectively, is provided with a plurality of openings 34 through which heat, from below can pass. The openings 34 are smallest in the longitudinal center of the archway and increase progres sively in size towards the front and rear thereof. Furthermore, the openings in the uppermost archway 14 are disposed in longitudinally staggered relatlonsbip to those in the lower archway 14 so that the solid portions 36 of the upper archway act as baffles to still further distribute the heat passing through the openings in the lower archway 14.

In each of the four corners of the coil heating chamber 10, an outlet flue 38 is provided and the four outlet flues open into a common gas conduit 40 which leads to a suitable stack. Each of the outlet flues 38 is provided with a damper or valve 16 bv means of which is controlled the egress of the waste products of combustion. The operator in charge of the furnace can readily adjust the dampers or valves 16 to maintain'a uniformly even or distributed temperature throughout the chamber 10.

In actual practice the furnace operates substantially as follows. Heat from a suitable source, such as a gas burner or the like, is projected into the combustion chambers less evenly distributed throughout the combustion chamber upon coming into contact with the bafllc 28 and the rising wall 30. The heat naturally rises and passes through the openings 31 in the checkered archways l4 and 14, and because of the staggered relation of the openings therein the direct upward course of the heat is interrupted. li urtnermore, because of the fact that the openings are smallest near the longitudinal center of the archways and increase progressively in size towards the front and rear, more heat is admitted through the larger openings which are near the outer extremities of the chamber and where it is generally difficult to obtain much heat. Thus the extreme corners of the coil chamber 10 are as thoroughly heated as the center and the heating action upon the heating coil 18 is substantially uniform throughout the entire chamber. Furthermore. by properly manipulating the dampers 16 in the lines 38 drafts can be created by means of which heat can be drawn to almost any part of the coil heating chamber so that a uniform temperature can be maintained throughout.

Although a preferred illustrative embodiment of the present invention has been described, it should be understood that the inventive idea upon which the invention is based is broader than the particular form set forth, and no limitations are intended other than those imposed by the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A furnace comprising a coil chamber, a coil disposed therein, a combustion cham ber disposed beneath the coil chamber, a double checkered wall separating the coil chamber from the combustion chamber and provided with a plurality of staggered openings increasing in size from the center towards the front and rear to produce an even distribution of heat in the coil chamber, outlet flues disposed in the upper corners of the coil chamber, a main gas conduit communicating therewith, and adjustable dampers disposed in said flues for controlling the distribution of heat throughout the coilv chamber.

2. A furnace comprising a coil heating chamber, a heating coil disposed therein, a plurality of combustion chambers disposed beneath the coil heating chamber, a double checkered arched wall separating said chambers and provided with a plurality of staggered openings progressively increasing in size from the center to the front and rear, outlet flues disposed in the upper corners of the coil heating chamber, adjustable means disposed in said fines for controlling the distribution of heat in said chamber and a main gas conduit communicating with the outlet fines.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 28th day of August, 1923.

GEORGE pAvrs WHITE; 

